My Vegan Nightmare--Body Freak-out

What happens when an LA girl with a fitness & lifestyle Instagram account decides to go vegan? She does so seamlessly and thrives more so than anyone thought possible---right? California, warm weather, beautiful people and vegans. What could go wrong? A LOT!

I'm sharing my "going vegan round-1" story for the purpose of transparency & to expose the fact that not everything in life goes as planned...or as social media promises us...

So, last year this time I had just transferred to USC as a sophomore and was lucky enough to connect almost immediately with a wonderful group of like minded people. Like minded in the sense that we just vibed-- & most of them just so happened to either be vegan or were making the transition. HA! That's why we were vibing so organically--I always considered myself to have a "vegan soul" but never made the full switch out of fear that it would effect my chronic gastrointestinal condition (silly because it would actually end up helping-- DUH). Anywho, it felt as though the universe was handing me a silver plater with vegan treats saying, "it's time Noelle--come to the vegan side."

So I did. I wasn't a big meat-eater to begin with, as I had given up red meat 6 years prior, was dairy-intolerant and barley touched eggs. So my only real sources of animal products prior to going vegan were poultry + fish--but still, the official switch felt monumental and "big." So, one day I literally just said, "I'm done" and went vegan cold turkey without any real qualms. Really, I wish I could tell you how difficult it was to give up sushi or how I craved chicken on my salad, but when that switch went off, the bulb went out too. I just didn't care for it anymore.

The mental aspect of it all was honestly the easiest part for me because I felt like I was finally my true self. I know that sounds mushy, but it's really true & it's innately a tough feeling to put into words because it's not often we feel that way. It. Felt. Good.

Until it didn't.

Me, being the nutrition nerd & perfectionist I am, wanted to take every dietary precaution, in order to avoid any mishaps... to make sure that I could maintain my veganism free of any health ailments. So I went out and bought myself a Vitamin B-12 supplement, thought nothing of it, and started taking it daily.

After about a months time, my skin, which had never broken out once before, had bright red zits all over both cheeks. My hair began to fall out in literal clumps-- Annnnd I got down into the low 90s weight wise (YIKES!!). It was fast and it was dramatic.

There I was, mentally feeling better than I had in my entire life, but physically deteriorating. I was starving all the time, my workouts sucked, and my acne destroyed my self confidence. Notice, I didn't post many selfies during those 3 months 🙃.

Long story short, I was devastated. My doctor, friends & family were getting too concerned about my healthy...I was getting too concerned for me to uphold the lifestyle that seemingly didn't jive with my body. So, I went back *pouting & crying* to eating fish & chicken again. But my acne STAYED. Weeks went by & it only got more inflamed and my hair KEPT falling out.

At this point I was soooo done. Like come on, body, why are u being such a delicate flower?

Well...remember that innocent vitamin b-12 supplent I bought without batting an eye. Yeah, so it was a highly concentrated, raspberry flavored SPRAY. How on earth can u regulate how much you are legitimately consuming with a mouth spray?! I was consuming 10000x more than my daily requirements, which, though it was a water saluable vitamin, resulted in my body attempting to get rid of it any way possible (hi acne!)

Within a week of thowing it away with a *scornful flare* 😂 my acne began to slowly go away. *Sigh* was that dramatic enough for you? Welcome to the life of the gypsy-soul with goals ahaha! Laughing now, though at the time it was faaar from funny. Don't take life to seriously.

Anywho, I never wanted to give up veganism...in fact I feel like I never really did...it was like a temporary healing time & to this day I can't sit with myself at the sushi bar without hearing that voice that would prefer to stick with avo-rolls.